1
as in oppressive
difficult to endure
the murderous heat of the desert
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in difficult
requiring considerable physical or mental effort
those exams were murderous
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in lethal
likely to cause or capable of causing death
braved murderous machine-gun fire to capture the hill from the enemy
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4
as in murdering
eager for or marked by the shedding of blood, extreme violence, or killing
Viking warriors became legendary for the murderous fury they displayed in battle
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of murderous
Macbeth, also an unstable Scottish king, blames the witches for the ills caused by his own murderous decisions.
—
Emily Zarevich, JSTOR Daily, 3 Sep. 2025
Yet the murderous rampage has the strange consequence of leaving him with a mysterious gift, as Ramón’s body develops magnetic powers.
—Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 28 Aug. 2025
All of Ibsen is there – the murderous marital ennui, the broiling rage under the bourgeois façade – but DaCosta has made one key change to the original play.
—Ben Jureidini, Them., 22 Aug. 2025
My innards weren’t roiled by low expectations toward the summit — that was a given — but by the long list of Putin critics and political opponents who have died under mysterious circumstances over his murderous decadeslong reign.
—Andy Shaw, Chicago Tribune, 22 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for murderous
Emily Zarevich, JSTOR Daily, 3 Sep. 2025
Yet the murderous rampage has the strange consequence of leaving him with a mysterious gift, as Ramón’s body develops magnetic powers.
—Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 28 Aug. 2025
All of Ibsen is there – the murderous marital ennui, the broiling rage under the bourgeois façade – but DaCosta has made one key change to the original play.
—Ben Jureidini, Them., 22 Aug. 2025
My innards weren’t roiled by low expectations toward the summit — that was a given — but by the long list of Putin critics and political opponents who have died under mysterious circumstances over his murderous decadeslong reign.
—Andy Shaw, Chicago Tribune, 22 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for murderous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for murderous
Adjective
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Despite international aid groups withdrawing from Afghanistan due to the Taliban’s oppressive regime and its persecution of women and girls, the Reynolds chose to remain.—
Mostafa Salem,
CNN Money,
19 Sep. 2025
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Hurricane season and summer humidity can be oppressive.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
19 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Ncell, Nepal’s second-largest telecommunications service provider, noted that shutting down all platforms at once was, in any case, technically difficult and warned that the move would severely impact business.—
Nir Kshetri,
The Conversation,
14 Sep. 2025
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Last summer, after years of hip problems and some difficult surgeries to address them, Jill had an operation that went poorly.—
Bianca Bosker,
The Atlantic,
14 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Advocacy groups have also raised concerns, noting Arizona's troubled history with executions, including a series of botched lethal injections that led to an eight-year pause before the state resumed the practice in 2022.—
Alia Shoaib,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 Sep. 2025
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For children with sepsis, a potentially lethal reaction by the body to infection that causes 20% of deaths worldwide, the wait can prove deadly.—
Brian Simpson,
NPR,
19 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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These findings highlight an urgent need to shield stem cells from the harsh realities of space.—
Pranjal Malewar,
New Atlas,
20 Sep. 2025
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Rain is coming, penciled in for an hour or two from now, and a harsh British wind is flinging leaves off branches and cloaking the countryside with something that smells dungy and damp.—
Rob Picheta,
CNN Money,
20 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Partnered with Val Chmerkovskiy, Earle tackled a challenging routine that impressed the judges.—
Amanda Castro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Sep. 2025
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Real-world tests The scientists tested THOR AI on several challenging copper, argon, and tin cases.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Last week's deadly shooting also heightens concerns of university safety protocols and security at public events.—
Anna Commander,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Sep. 2025
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The mid-air collision sent both aircraft hurtling into the Potomac River and left no survivors, becoming the deadliest airline crash in the country since 2001.—
Jillian Frankel,
PEOPLE,
16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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While Mehta treated Hampton’s bloody nose and the physio assessed Greenwood, Bronze grabbed the physio tape and strapped her own leg.—
Charlotte Harpur,
New York Times,
13 Sep. 2025
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Most allow some violent content but place restrictions on especially gory and bloody videos and restrict such content from younger users.—
Hadas Gold,
CNN Money,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The next few minutes show her searing chicken that’s been marinated in paprika, salt and pepper, and sauteeing onions and tomatoes.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
20 Sep. 2025
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Many now consider Scorsese’s searing, boisterous boxing drama one of the director’s best — a brutal, black-and-white symphony of rage and violence.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
17 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Murderous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/murderous. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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